The present invention relates to a removable roof for a motor vehicle, especially for a passenger car, which overarches a passenger space in a body of the passenger car and is held on fixed body structures of the body, the roof being made of dimensionally rigid material.
A removable roof known from German document DE 41 37 344 A1 is made of dimensionally stiff material and overarches a passenger space between a windshield frame and a roll bar which surrounds the passenger space transversely in relation to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. A retaining apparatus is in operation adjacent to the windshield frame and reaches behind a second hook element on the windshield frame with a first hook element of the roof. In contrast, a locking apparatus is installed on the roof, where it borders on the roll bar, which engages into a hook of the roll bar with a catch of the roof.
An otherwise removable roof for a motor vehicle, apparent from German document DE 94 06 435 U1, can be inserted between a windshield frame and a roll bar. This roof is formed by two roof elements that are assembled in a median longitudinal plane of the motor vehicle. Both roof elements are held in position through the mediation of one identical lock on the windshield frame and the roll bar, respectively.
A latching device for a folding hood for a passenger car, disclosed by German document DE 34 13 379, has a crank-like latching part on the folding hood and includes a type of connecting link guide on a windshield frame. The latching part can be swiveled about an axis running in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and the connecting link guide is oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.
It is an object of the invention to create a removable roof for a passenger car with two roof elements held in place with interposition of at least one locking apparatus on a body of the passenger car that is simple, true to function, and secure.
This object is accomplished in accordance with the invention through a locking apparatus provided for each roof element, and a bracing device with which each roof element cooperates, with the bracing device, lying on a fixed body structure, counteracting forces upon actuation of a locking part of the locking apparatus to which a boundary wall of the roof element running adjacent to the locking apparatus is exposed. Additional features of the invention are reflected in the dependent claims.
Advantages attained with the invention include the advantage that each roof element is provided with a locking apparatus, and accordingly handling, that is, releasing or positioning the roof element, is possible with only one locking apparatus. In order to be able to use a locking device that contains a crank-like locking part and a connecting link guide, a provision is made for a bracing apparatus that advantageously counteracts moments that arise in activating the locking apparatus on a boundary wall of the roof element running adjacent to the locking apparatus. The function of the bracing device is supported by the fact that (viewed transversely in relation to the vehicle) bracing elements constructed in the manner of buffers of the aforementioned bracing apparatus are provided on both sides of the locking apparatus. The bracing elements can be easily manufactured, since they are made of plastic, and are advantageously constructed because they are arranged on the roof element. Finally, the holders of the bracing element are components that can be repositioned without difficulty, and any possible manufacturing tolerances can be equalized in a defined manner thanks to the adjustability of the bracing element.